The Five States of Emily Prentiss
by oliviahotchner
Summary: Annoyance. Nervousness. Speechlessness. Fear. Happiness. One envelope and an obligation can bring so many feelings to one Emily Prentiss. ONESHOT.


**A/N: So, I'm back. Slowly but I'm coming back. I know this isn't related to any of my other stories still open, but I needed something different, something light and beautiful to make find my way back together. The next updates will be over my other fics and I will finish all of them.**

 **Before anything, I'd like to talk about something that makes me really sad. When I first started reading fics, there were dozen of oneshots, twoshots, threeshots and multi-chapters fics every week, full with Hotchniss and so much talent. I miss that. The number decreased so much that we only have a few open fics about our favorite couple on FF. I'd like to invite all writers to keep writing about our ship because we need to keep them alive, especially now with Hotch gone. Let's write, let's keep them alive, only we can do this.**

 **Secondly, I'd like to thank everyone who sent reviews and PMs wishing the best for me. You guys have no idea how much strength it gave me and because of that I'm back and to stay. As I always say, you guys are the best readers in the world. Thank you.**

 **This fic was based on an old plot I had and never had used it. It's sweet and light and I hope you guys enjoy it.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own CM.**

THE FIVE STATES OF EMILY PRENTISS

/ ONE /

Emily Prentiss was annoyed.

She stared at her inbox and glared at the white envelope staring at her. It was the last thing she needed. Another political function filled with drunken people who would lose any kind of inhibition until the end of the night and probably do something that would make them deeply regret in the morning. She had to attend to a lot of them while growing up because of her mother's job and she didn't have a single good memory of any of them. She just didn't have the slightest desire of going to something like that, especially because the FBI was just as full of hypocritical politics as the Embassies she used to frequent when she was young.

Just as she was wondering if she could just throw the envelope in her trashcan she heard a familiar voice coming from the outside the glass doors.

"Hey, did you guys see this yet?" Garcia spoke excitedly while waving a small white envelope in her hands. Of course Garcia would be excited about that.

"Yeah, I just saw it in my inbox…" Morgan said showing her a similar envelope. "I thought it wouldn't happen this year…" He commented and Emily groaned at him.

"I was _so_ hoping it wouldn't happen this year… then I wouldn't have to come up with an excuse for not coming…" She said and Garcia gasped at her.

"But you have to come! C'mon, sweetcheeks, you've bailed it for the last two years, you can't do it again!" She whined but the brunette agent just shook her head at her.

"Not happening, Garcia. Sorry but I won't dress up for a stupid ball only to have to see some politics and kiss some high-up's ass, and I most definitely _won't_ take any sexist asshole trying to take me to dance just to try to feel me up. Nuh uh, not happening…" She said decisively.

"What kind of balls do you usually go to, Prentiss?" Rossi asked with a raised eyebrow, having heard the last part of her conversation. Emily rolled her eyes at him and ignored the snickering coming from Morgan before answering.

"Had to go to a lot of them because of my mother so, thank you but no. Not going to this one just like the other years…" She said firmly just as their unit chief came down from his office, talking with JJ, walking towards the rest of his team.

"I am sorry to disappoint you, Prentiss, but you'll have to go to this one. It is mandatory and I just got a call from the Director saying that he expects my team to be there, no exceptions." He said, giving a sympathetic look at the gaping woman in front of him. "I hate these as much as you do and I'd love to bail this but that's not an option."

"Ah, c'mon Hotch, you can't be serious!" She cried.

"Sorry. Everyone is expected to go this Saturday, black tie and preferably with a plus one…" He said with an unlike roll of eyes at the last part.

"Great." Emily mumbled indignantly and Garcia beamed at her, clapping her hands.

"Oh, c'mon gumdrop, don't be like that! We can go shopping to buy a new dress and new shoes and get all prettied up… and then we'll have a night out of sickos and blood, with free drinks and food and a dancefloor! It will be awesome!" She said excitedly while leaning into her boyfriend who just smiled at her antics.

"Yeah, the difference is that you have your Adonis to go with you just like JJ has Will while I either find some guy to accompany me last minute, who, with my luck, will probably be an ass, or I go by myself to get hit by some drunken jackasses until the end of the night…" She said with a shake of her head. "At least I will not be alone without a plus one, right?" She said hopefully looking at her male teammates.

"Uh, sorry cara, but I have this old friend who is just visiting town and we have a lot to catch up…" He said with an apologetic smile.

Emily huffed and turned to Reid then, who was not so subtly toying with his purple tie, avoiding her eyes. "No way…" She whispered.

"I am kind of seeing this girl…?" He said hesitantly and Emily gasped while Garcia squealed and Morgan clapped his back.

"My boy!" He congratulated him and the genius smiled embarrassedly while JJ winked at him and ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Great, just great…" Emily groaned and Hotch cleared his throat.

"I don't have a date either." He stated and she looked up to him.

"You don't?" She asked and he shook his head quickly. Before she could pronounce another word Garcia squealed and clapped her hands excitedly, drawing their attention.

"Problem solved, sweetcheeks. You and boss man can go together!" She said and Emily widened her eyes slightly and shook her head.

"I really don't think it would be approp-" She started only to have the tech cutting her.

"Of course it is okay, sugarplum. You will be sure that you'll be in the company of a gentleman and neither of you will be alone at the party… It's just perfect!" She said and Emily looked at Hotch with an unsure look.

"I don't mind…" The unit chief said with a shrug and Emily bit her lip, pondering about her options. She didn't have other choice but to come to the party but she could either refuse the offer and try to find a date outside of the office or she could accept the proposal and enjoy a night with her friends in the company of a good man. It wasn't really a choice in the end.

If she was honest to herself she would have to admit that the prospect of being the date of Aaron Hotchner was very much appealing, even if it was just a friendly date for a job function. Being by his side the whole night, being seeing with him and maybe even getting a couple of dances, it was very, _very_ tempting.

"Well, I guess it's okay then…" She nodded with a small smile and was greeted by an unfamiliar warm stare with a rare appearance of his dimples, making her insides flutter. "I'll meet you there?" She asked and her smiled increased at his shake of head.

"I'm picking you up, Prentiss…"

"Are you sure? It's out of your way and we could just meet here…" She suggested but he shook his head again.

"Be ready at six thirty. I'm picking you up." He said and she nodded at him, eying him as he walked back to his office.

"It seems like someone is having a date with the boss…" Morgan teased after Hotch was out of sight, effectively taking Emily out of her reverie.

"Ha ha, very funny Morgan." She rolled her eyes at him and turned back to her girlfriends. "I guess we need new dresses, uh?" She asked, chuckling at Penelope's grin.

/ TWO /

Emily Prentiss was nervous.

In fact, nervous was really an understatement.

Her whole body tingled with excitement and her palms were sweating as she looked at the clock, seeing it was already six fifteen. It was ridiculous, really ridiculous, but she couldn't help the feeling bubbling inside of her, knowing that Hotch would be there in just a few minutes to pick her up.

She had just finished her make-up, having chosen to just apply some black eyeliner and a very light smoky eyeshadow with a good amount of mascara, to contrast with the blood-red lipstick, perfectly applied and leaving her lips barring the sinfulness. Her hair was half tied to the left, the curls hanging around her shoulder, leaving her right one completely bare since her dress was strapless.

Speaking of which, she eyed the navy blue dress hanging beside her full length mirror and smiled. It had taken a full afternoon but she had found the perfect dress with Garcia and JJ. Both blondes had practically combusted when they saw the full-length blue dress, strapless, with a heart-shaped neckline. It was mermaid style so it hugged all her curves perfectly and the slit that came until just above her right knee made it even more perfect, sexy in the right measure.

Seeing that she now had exactly eleven minutes until her 'date' arrived, and knowing for sure that Hotch, being Hotch, would knock on her door at exactly six-thirty, just like he said, she took off her robe to reveal a pair of matching black lingerie, something elegant and sexy to complete the outfit, even though she was the only one who would see it.

She carefully stepped into her gown and finished with her favorite five-inches Louboutin _scarpin_. As she looked at her reflection in her mirror, Emily felt beautiful, like she hasn't felt in a long time. It was good to dress-up and be all feminine, on contrary of her usual wardrobe, all black, white and grey tons and just the same combination of dress pants or jeans with plain shirts and suit jackets and her classic black boots. It was good to feel like that, sexy and pretty, forgetting for a few hours her awful routine with her demanding manly job.

Her heart raced again as she heard the firm knock on her front door and she grabbed her black clutch and scarf, taking one last look in the mirror before walking down the stairs, swallowing her nervousness as she approached the door.

/ THREE /

Emily Prentiss was speechless.

She wasn't naive and much less blind. She already knew that Aaron Hotchner was a very, _very_ handsome man and that he looked pretty damn _good_ in a suit, having seeing him almost every single day in the last five years dressed in one.

But even so, seeing him dressed in a perfectly tailored _tux_ had definitely reduced her into speechlessness.

His broad shoulders were even more tempting and the white fabric of his shirt was clinging into his well-toned chest and the vision was just mouth-watering.

"Jesus." Emily blinked, because she was pretty sure that she had managed to keep her mouth shut and her voice wasn't grave and deep like that. As she looked up to the man she felt her insides trembling, noticing the same look of astonishment in his face at her sight, and she was sure that her skin flushed at the intensity of his stare as he roamed her body shamelessly with his hazel eyes.

"Hi." She said quietly, with a small smile in her face which increased as he locked his eyes with hers, pupils dilated.

"Hi." He said just as quietly. They stared at each other for a handful seconds in silence before he looked away, clearing his throat embarrassedly. "I'm trying to come up with a word… beautiful doesn't seem to do justice…" He said and she wondered if his voice always sounded that deep and if it was normal her whole body to shiver at the sound of it.

"Thank you…" She smiled at him and when he mirrored her she used all her training to control her expression as her whole body tingled with the sight of his dimples.

"I know it's not a real date, but I was raised right, so…" He said and she frowned before gasping at the sight of the small bouquet of yellow tulips he brought in his left hand.

He handed it to her and she blinked away a few tears as she sniffed the flowers and closed her eyes with a smile. "They're my favorites." She said and from the look on his face she knew it had been pure luck his choice. "This not-real-date is already beating eighty percent of my real dates, you know?" She joked and he chuckled with her. "Let me just put these on a vase so we can go…" She said and he nodded as she walked to the kitchen and filled a white vase with water and put the flowers on. She touched one of the petals and sniffed it one last time before walking back to the door, grabbing her keys and closing it behind her.

"Shall we?" He offered his arm and she took it, smiling as they walked through the hall towards the elevators. He pressed the button and as the doors opened and he led her inside, the last thing she though before the doors closed behind them was that for the first time she was hoping that the night wouldn't end too early.

/ FOUR /

Emily Prentiss was scared.

There wasn't other word to describe it, really.

They were at the party for almost two hours and Emily couldn't remember ever having such a good time. She wanted to attribute her good night at being with her friends, in a familiar and welcomed environment, with great food and free drinks, she really did. But as her 'date' approach their table, smiling at her as he handed her a new drink and took his seat beside her, his arm making its way perfectly and naturally to the back of her chair, she knew it was all bullshit.

Each minute that passed Emily questioned over and over how on Earth no one had ever taken a claim on this man until now, after his divorce. Speaking of which, she also wondered what the hell Haley was thinking when she walked out from a man like this when she had him completely and utterly into her hands, devoted and infatuated.

It was ridiculous, it really was, because she wasn't even in a real date with him and he treated her better than her last long-term boyfriend treated her, after eleven months of dating, back on Seattle's office. From opening the doors to pulling out the chair for her, Aaron Hotchner had proved to be the most gentleman man she had ever met and that was seriously screwing all her self-control and she hated him for that.

"Would you like to dance?" His deep voice brought her back to the present and she looked at him with a surprised look.

"What?"

"This song. I like it. Would you care to dance?" He repeated the question and it took her two seconds to recognize the song that had just started.

Amazed.

Dancing a romantic song with him wasn't really a good idea with the feelings she was fighting against it but the look on his face made her head move on its own. The smile he sent her melted her insides and she just had to swallow heavily. He stood up and offered his hand, which she took it without hesitation, and led her to the dancefloor.

Very few couples were dancing and she could recognize a few of them in the low light of the room but as Hotch pulled her closer to him, holding one hand with his, resting on his chest, and the other brushing her lower back, hesitantly, before touching her with a more firm grip. She locked her eyes with his as they swung around the dancefloor, slowly, listening to the lyrics and blocking away everything else in that moment.

Emily battled with herself at the flow of feelings that hit her like a brick, stealing her breath and scaring her. In that moment, in that dancefloor, in the arms of that man, she felt a safety like she had never been able to feel in her like with anyone else and that scared her because it wasn't real, it wasn't true and when the night was over and she walked into her home and took off that beautiful dress she would be alone all over again and the magic would be gone.

She would be back to her place and he would be back to his, untouchable, prohibited, unreachable and all too good for her. And even though she knew all of that, even though she knew it would make everything even harder, her traitorous body could help but lean on him just a bit, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder, inhaling deeply his scent and trying, desperately to imprint the feeling of him in her skin, the smell of him in her mind.

 _I don't know how you do what you do_

 _I'm so in love with you, it just keeps getting better_

 _I wanna spend the rest of my life with you by my side_

 _Forever and ever_

 _Every little thing that you do_

 _Baby I'm amazed by you_

"Are you okay?" He asked quietly right against her ear and she knew he could feel her shiver. She hummed an affirmative at him and sighed when his hand started caressing her back through the fabric of her dress. "Are you tired? Do you want to leave?" He asked and she instinctively tightened her grip on his hand and shifted closer to him.

"No, not yet…" She murmured and honestly, she sounded so pathetic that she wanted to beat herself but she couldn't bother to care because the feeling was so good and the moment was so magic and she just wanted to freeze it and stay there, forever.

The last lyrics of the song echoed through the room and when another one came along, neither of them moved from their positions, just continuing to dance, their rhythm perfect, their hands locked together, her head resting on his shoulder and his on her hair. There were more people on the dancefloor now but neither of them noticed, too involved in their own dance.

 _It's undeniable that we should be together_

 _It's unbelievable how I used to say that I'd fall never_

 _The basis you need to know, if you don't know just how I feel_

 _Then let me show you now that I'm for real_

 _If all things in time, time will reveal_

Emily didn't know how long they were standing there, how many songs they danced, neither she cared. It took all her strength to not complain as he finally stepped away from her and led their way to the table again, and her whole body tingled as it remembered the touch of his hand.

The conversation got lost on Emily's mind the rest of the night as she just nodded and politely added something when asked while the team talked. Garcia made her dance a few ballads with her and JJ and Morgan and Dave each took their chance to dance a song with her too but her eyes always came back to the man she craved, the man who had left her trembling.

She didn't fail to notice the way he too stayed quiet the rest of the night and specially the way his arm didn't leave the back of her chair anytime she was sitting beside him, his hand brushing her bare shoulder a few times. It made her blood boil and she had trouble to breathe steady but God, if she didn't love every minute of it.

All too soon though, the team started to leave. First Reid and his date, was his name Angela, or maybe Jessica? She couldn't honestly remember, but she seemed to be a good girl and a good match to him. Then Will and JJ left, having Henry to come back to, followed closely by Morgan and Garcia, way too excited to pretend they were going to sleep soon.

It was almost midnight when Hotch asked quietly if she was ready to go and not having any other excuse to deny it she nodded reluctantly, swallowing the regret for the night to be ending. She didn't miss the curious exchange between Rossi and Hotch as they were saying goodbye, just a look, which would pass unnoticed by anyone who didn't know them better or was not trained to notice behavior, but she brushed it off, hugging him goodbye and his date, a very nice lady, by the way.

The drive to her apartment was mostly in silence, not uncomfortable at all, but familiar, comforting and peaceful. He parked in front of her building and just as she would expect of him, turned off the engine and opened the door, walking around the car to open hers and help her out.

She didn't even register the way up to her apartment, just taking a deep breath as they were standing in front of her door. "So… this is me…" She said quietly and chastised herself at the awful cliché. He just nodded at her with a smile and she opened the door, looking for something, anything to make the night last a little longer. "I had a really good time tonight…" She said and his dimples appeared, making everything seem harder and stronger.

"I had a great time too…" He murmured, his hands going inside his pockets. They stared at each other for a couple of seconds and Emily sighed inwardly, accepting the fact that it was indeed over and she should just get the hell inside and swallow the desire of inviting him in for a cup of coffee.

"See you on Monday, then…" She said reluctantly after his nod and murmured a goodbye, walking into her apartment and closing the door behind her.

She leaned her head against the wood and sighed, closing her eyes at the feeling of lost she was experience, hating herself for letting her walls to fall, for letting herself to be vulnerable and to let her heart to get exposed to this. She toed off her shoes, placing them beside the door and dropped her clutch and scarf at the small table on the front hall and walked to the kitchen.

As she poured herself a glass of water and stared at her flowers there was a timid knock on the door. She walked towards it and checked the peephole, gasping at the sight that greeted him. She unlocked the door and opened it, frowning at the look on his face. "Hotch?"

He didn't answer it. Instead he stepped closer and cupped her cheeks, descending his lips on hers and effectively cutting all her brain functions and breathing and any other senses she had. She didn't miss the beat and circled his torso with her arms, pressing herself into him and opening her lips to his, drowning into his taste, moaning at his touch, relishing the feeling of him with her, against her, into her.

She would never know how long that kiss lasted, neither she cared, but when they finally pulled apart, breathless, standing in the middle of the hall, the look in his eyes made her own water and she knew that the feeling of safety, peace and happiness she was feeling wasn't temporary. She knew it would last, it would grow and it would be with her for as long as she breathed.

"I'm sorry I took so long…" He murmured against her lips and she smiled at him, a smile full of passion and love, trust and surrender.

"It was worth it…" She answered and rose on her tiptoes to catch his lips again.

/ FIVE /

Emily Prentiss was happy.

She was so deliriously happy that she couldn't remember another time where she had felt this happy.

As she felt the strong arm dropped by her waist start to move she smiled and snuggled closer to the warmth covering her back. She felt kisses being dropped over her bare shoulders and neck and enjoyed the tingles in her body. "Morning, sweetheart…" She closed her eyes at the whisper in her ear and sighed contently.

"Mmm, good morning…" She whispered back, turning her head to capture his lips with hers in a long and deep kiss.

As he turned her on her back and covered her body with his, Emily moaned deeply, arching her back to him, trying to get closer to him, craving him, needing him, wanting him so badly. He met her need with just as much passion as her, opening her mouth to his, caressing her body, molding his body with hers, fitting her against him, pressing her into the bed.

As he loved her, like no other man had ever loved her, Emily felt happy.

So deliriously happy.

And she knew it was going to last.

 **THE END.**

 **A/N: Reviews are very much appreciated.**


End file.
